NHL Predictions 2008-09

OK, here’s the thing, everyone knows it is damn hard to repeat as champs. No team has done it since the Wings in 1997 and ’98. It’s also tough to make NHL predictions year after year, which is what we’re doing with this NHL predictions 2008-09 article.

With 30 clubs and a salary cap, it’s difficult to keep a championship team together for an extended period of time. Teams have a better chance now than ever before to climb up from the basement to the penthouse. Just look at the Philadelphia Flyers: They went from last place overall to the NHL’s final four in one year.

When you make it to the Cup final, however, it is a two-month grind that extends your season into early summer. And the obligatory celebration period leaves you with less preparation time for the upcoming season. It leads to what is commonly referred to as the Stanley Cup hangover.

What makes the Red Wings different?

Detroit’s forwards

For starters, their best forwards — Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk — have just entered the prime of their careers. Both are highly skilled two-way threats.

Detroit’s system

Then there is the Wings’ system. They play a fast-paced, puck-possession game that confuses and frustrates opponents. Also, Mike Babcock’s coaching has as big an influence on the outcome of his team’s games as any coach in the league.

Detroit’s lineup

Then there’s the obvious: An already great team adds the most prized free agent of the summer in Marian Hossa, who declined long-term, multimillion dollar offers to sign for one year with the Red Wings because he thinks they give him the best chance of winning the Cup.

It should be noted that a number of the Wings’ key players — including future Hall of Fame defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom and valuable checking forwards Kris Draper and Kirk Maltby — are getting long in the tooth. But Lidstrom has always been quietly effective without expending too much energy, while Draper and Maltby are role players who average between 12 and 15 minutes of ice time.